Pixar’s latest runaway success, Inside Out 2, has now become the studio’s highest-grossing movie in history. The nearly decade-long follow-up to the 2015 original has seemingly surpassed everyone’s expectations and has, in a way, saved the studio from a long streak of failure.
In recent years, the studio has been having some major box office duds, beginning with 2020’s Onward being pulled from theaters early due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Their following three movies, Soul, Luca, and Turning Red, were released straight to streaming. 2022’s Lightyear was a massive flop, and 2023’s Elemental, while not outright bombing, failed to meet expectations. 
Inside Out 2 opened to $154 million and has since made $543.5 million at the domestic box office and $708 million internationally, for a current total of $1.251 billion at the box office. It has since become Disney’s highest-grossing animated film since the 2020 pandemic and is now Pixar’s highest-grossing film of all time, surpassing 2018’s The Incredibles 2, which earned $1.243 Billion.
In addition to that, Inside Out 2 is currently the fifth highest-grossing animated film of all time:
– The Lion King (2019) $1.663 Billion
– Frozen II (2019) $1.454 Billion
– The Super Marion Bros. Movie (2023) $1.362 Billion
– Frozen (2013) $1.29 Billion
– Inside Out 2 (2024) $1.251 Billion
Once considered a fledgling studio on the verge of being phased out or merged with Disney Animation proper, Pixar’s luck seems to be finally turning around. However, some see this as a sign of Pixar’s push to “franchise” many of its older films, which may encourage further sequels over new original titles.
Pixar’s next film is Elio, currently set for June 13th, 2025. After that is Toy Story 5, set for June 19th, 2026. Not much is known after that, but rumors of a third Finding Nemo and a third Incredibles movie have been making the rounds.
What do you think? Is Inside Out 2 deserving of its current success? Will this likely encourage more sequels? Let us know your thoughts.
Sources: Variety, Entertainment Weekly
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